Explore your school options

Are you thinking about next school year yet? It may only be November, but the time to start planning for 2015-16 is right now.

Where do you want to go to school next year? Which school will give your child the best chance to succeed?

There are 154 Metro schools, and 85 of them are open for application for the 2015-16 school year. The Optional Schools Application period opens November 3, which means the time is now to find your right fit.

Here’s how to do it:

Explore
With so many schools available on the application – and so many different types of schools – it’s well worth it to sit down and look at all of your options. Consider the academic program, the school schedule, the school location, before and after school needs, extracurriculars and more. What does your child like? How does he like to learn? No matter what your answer, there are several options available.

Visit Schools
Once you’ve made a short list of possible schools, go out and visit them. See for yourself what’s happening inside. Speak with teachers and principals. Meet other parents. This is a vital step in your choice process. Form your own opinions about a school based on what you’ve seen with your own eyes, not what your neighbor says. After all, you want the best school for your children, not your neighbor’s. If you focus on a school’s opportunities for your individual child, you will find the right fit.

Apply
The Optional Schools Application opens on November 3 online and on paper. You can apply to up to seven schools, so be thorough. The more schools you apply to, the more likely you are to get one of your top choices. The deadline is December 5, but applications are not first come, first served. Every application is treated the same way. The selection process will happen in January.

NEW THIS YEAR: Is your baby headed to high school next year? Wipe away those tears. It’s true they may be all grown up, but that just means the opportunities before them are wide open!

All students entering 9th and 10th grades can choose the high schools they want to attend based on their specific interests and the academic programs available at that school. Is your kid a future engineer? Take a look at Glencliff, McGavock or Stratford. Interested in medicine? Visit Hillwood, Hunters Lane or Whites Creek. Marketing and business? Hillsboro and Maplewood are great options for you. Want the challenge of advanced academics? Take your pick – Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge are available at all zoned high schools.

This is what school choice looks like. You have dozens of options, so spend the next few weeks combing through them and finding just the right fit for your child.

To learn more about the application process and to see a list of open schools, visit MNPS.org.

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